Tickets Please
by enchantment1972
Summary: It's 'Movie Night' on the TARDIS and the Doctor has planned something extra special for Rose. Will he end up pulling off his grand design for the evening or will he end up feeling as if he's had his ticket punched? **Part of the I Think You Need A Doctor series**


**Author's Note:** I would like to give a HUGE and special thank you to Thornado who has just totally not only made my day but the rest of my year. Thank you so much for such an amazing show of support and encouragement regarding my stories. I can't even begin to thank you for the incredible lift you have just given me. :D

For those of you not familiar with the reference to the Sixth Doctor, he was rude, sarcastic (weren't they all? ;) ) and wore a multi-colored coat and a cat pin.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything in relation to Dr. Who.

Groaning and wheezing sounds fill the air causing a few patrons to turn their head at the sounds but luckily for the occupants of the incoming ship, the outsiders quickly lose interest and turn away before they are able to see the TARDIS materialize. Within moments the door to the blue police box swings open and out leans the Doctor as he holds onto the handle. "Well, here we are, Rose Tyler, just as I promised, a night out at the movies!"

He steps outside and grasps his braces as he takes a few deep breaths and declares, "The air in America," another deep breath, "there's nothing quite like it!"

Rose is soon standing beside him and following suit which leads to a bit of a coughing fit. "Doctor, what is that?"

"That would be smog, Rose," he answers with a cheeky grin. "I told you that there was nothing like it."

Rose rolls her eyes before she takes in the surrounding area and lights up with excitement. She grabs his arm tightly as she draws him to her side. "I've always wanted to go to a drive-in movie theater, Doctor, and there was never much chance of that happening back on the Estate."

"True, but you're not on the Estate anymore are you?" he asks in a more serious tone as he looks at her in a way that she can't quite make out. "You're with me now," he pulls out his sonic screwdriver and starts fiddling with it while he amends, "Of course, when I say with me, I mean living with me, that is living in the TARDIS with me…together…together…," his eyes grow softer before he lifts his gaze to meet her own and grins at her. "Well, we can discuss that later, can't we?"

Rose's quizzical gaze follows him around as he starts surveying the area around them as he searches for the perfect spot for them to put their feet up. "Rose, can you bring out those deck chairs that are in the console room? We'll stretch out on those while we watch the movie."

"Doctor, there's not any deck chairs in the console room," she replies with a bit of a laugh.

He flashes a wide grin at her and informs her, "There is now. You should know by now that the TARDIS supplies whatever we need! Now go on and grab them while I work on this speaker."

She finds the chairs leaning against the opening of the door and begins setting them up while she inquires, "Are you sure that you're going to be able to fix that?"

The Doctor draws back and fixes her with a dry gaze. "I'm offended that you'd even have to ask, Rose Tyler. Twenty-first century electronics is child's play compared to working on the TARDIS and we spend the majority of our time in that, don't we?"

"Yes, we do," she concurs with a nod as she finishes setting up the chairs and walking over to him to rest her head on his shoulder as she watches him work. "And spending all that time in a machine that seems to constantly need fixing even after you've just fixed it leaves me to ask again, are you sure?"

"That's not my fault!" he protests hotly as he twists the last of the wires together and slams the metal door shut so hard that it shakes the metal pole. "Just wait until you're as old as the TARDIS and see how much maintenance you need!"

A few sparks from the top of the TARDIS lantern shoot out and come dangerously close to the Doctor's range. "Well, that's different, isn't it?" he notes as he darts a sidelong glance at Rose. "Perhaps we should stay for the double feature, just to make sure that she's calmed down by then."

Rose spins away from him and turns back to tease, "You know, she can shock you just as easily from the inside of the TARDIS as she can the outside." She tilts her head as she considers his grimace as he acknowledges the truth of her words. "Over nine-hundred years old and nobody ever told you not to mention a woman's age?" She throws a laughing glance over to the TARDIS. "Or, um, well, I guess any female's age. Sorry about that, girl."

Afraid that he's about to become withdrawn and sulky when he crosses his arms in front of himself and pouts, Rose stretches out her hand for him to take and nods her head to indicate the deck chairs. "Do you think those seats are taken?"

He instantly releases a grin and a soft chuckle as he extends his hand to clasp hers. "So what will we be watching tonight?" queries Rose as they make themselves comfortable on the deck chairs.

The Doctor responds by pulling out an old newspaper clipping from his coat pocket and declares, "If we're staying for the double feature…," he scans the page until he finds the movie listing, "then it's 'The Girl Who Waited' for you and 'The Flying Stingrays Conquer The Army Of Ghosts' for me."

They lay back and relax in complete silence, simply gazing up at the night sky and enjoying the peace and quiet of the moment while sneaking glances at each other that become more flirtatious than stealthy as time goes by.

Their hands still linked, he gently swings them back and forth as he notes the time and announces, "I'm feeling a bit peckish." He leans up and ensures that no pretty boys are manning the concession stand and requests, "How do you fancy some snacks?"

"Sounds good," enthuses Rose as she meets his gaze, a gaze that is aimed at her very meaningfully and with an arched eyebrow. "What?" asks Rose as she halts their swinging hands and tightens her grip on his fingers. "You want me to go and pay for the food?"

"That does seem reasonable," he remarks as he attempts to start swinging their hands again but Rose's grip remains firmly still. "After all, I did arrange for the parking."

"You didn't pay for the parking," objects Rose, "all you did was land the TARDIS inside the parking lot!"

"Yes, but I had to pilot it to the proper time and place, Rose, which takes a great amount of skill and a finely trained pilot's skill must be recognized," thus ending his argument with a wave of his hand.

"Find me a skilled pilot and I'll gladly bestow him some honors," she returns a little too sweetly. When he gives her a hard stare, she knows that she's the one who's going to have to relent if they want to continue having a pleasant evening. "Fine!" she huffs. "What do you want to eat?"

He bears a cat who ate the cream smile as he gloats over his victory. "I thought you'd never ask. I would like an orange soda, make it medium-sized, I don't want to have to keep leaving during the best bits because I constantly need to use the loo, a large popcorn, a hot dog and three Mars bars."

Rose stares at him disbelievingly. "Aren't you forgetting something?"

He throws his arms out in utter bewilderment and tries, "Please and thank you?"

"I was thinking more of a bucket to be sick in," she supplies as she stalks off to the food stand purposely ignoring his call of 'And some cheesy nachos too!'

Rose's wait in line is blissfully brief and ends with a very satisfactory surprise when she arrives at the front. The spotted and bespectacled youth that had been running the stand just finished his shift and apparently a Weeping Angel must have displaced a young Greek god at some point in time because he's standing before Rose right now.

"What would you like?" he asks cheerfully.

And isn't that a loaded question. She sighs softly as she scans the menu and then him and then back to the menu or at least makes a poor attempt as she's unable to draw her gaze away from the magnificent specimen before her. Her interest hasn't been this peaked since the Doctor accidentally mentioned the shopping mall planet with food courts that only sold chips.

"My friend requested quite a few items," she states hesitantly, "it might take some time."

"That's okay, gorgeous, we can take all the time we need," he gestures behind her. "Everyone else is watching the trailers."

"Oh, that's good, very good," comments Rose without taking her eyes off of him. "Do you happen to have any Mars bars?"

"Never heard of them," he answers with a shake of his head. "How about some Snickers, is that okay?"

"Sure, whatever you have is fine. My friend's not too picky." She watches as he bends over to reach the candy bars on the bottom shelf. Thank heavens for small favors.

After fifteen minutes of boredom pass excruciatingly slow, the Doctor starts to shift around the blanket that he retrieved from the TARDIS and wonders what his pink and yellow girl is doing to be taking this long. He releases a huff of frustration. _The trailers are starting to play; I better go find her before she misses the movie. I hope that that the ice hasn't melted in my drink._

He rapidly makes his way to the concession stand, his stride only halting once he views the scene before him. Rose Tyler is merrily chatting away with a pretty boy. Again. _How in Rassilon's name did that happen?_

As he closes in on the oblivious couple, he notices that the young man in question isn't so much a young man as a young Adonis. Or perhaps Cassonova would be more appropriate if the way that Rose is leaning in close to him and laughing is anything to go by. _Oh, fantastic, even better! Hmmm, haven't said fantastic for awhile. Fantastic…fantastic…no, I don't care much for that expression anymore; it must just be a one-off. Besides, I can think of plenty of other words that begin with the letter 'F' that would be particularly useful right now._

"Hello, Rose Tyler, there's my girl!" he greets as he throws his arm around her shoulder and draws her firmly against his side. "She's _**my girl. **_He offers his best Oncoming Storm look to the miscreant before him as he squints at his name badge. "Donny, is it? I've been desperately parched waiting over there for some refreshment and here you are merely standing by as you chat up Rose and let the ice melt in my drink."

Donny peers down into the empty cup before him and sliding it over to the Doctor, he points out, "I haven't even filled it up yet."

"That doesn't mean that it's not melting all the same, does it Donny?" he questions in a tone so heavily laced with sarcasm that it could be wearing a multi-colored coat and a cat pin. "Well, come on, Donny, chop chop! I'd like to see the movie before the sequel comes out if you don't mind! Thank you!"

Rose's eyes widen in warning at the Doctor before she turns back to Donny and lays her hand on his arm in a placating gesture. "You'll have to excuse my friend, Donny; he hasn't been this rude in a very, very long time." When the Doctor simply tightens his hold on her and begins nuzzling her hair, she goes in for the kill. "By the way, have I mentioned how much I love your ginger hair?"

The Doctor stills instantly. "Oh, that was cold, Tyler. In fact, that was Ice Warrior cold."

"Then maybe I shouldn't add the ice?" inquires Donny with a smirk before he picks up the Doctor's cup.

"Let's just make it a bottled water, shall we, Donny?" The Time Lord's glare alone would have melted the ice anyway.

With an exasperated sigh, Rose starts digging through her pockets for money and freezes when she realizes that she's only carrying British currency. She bites her lip nervously before mumbling, "I don't have any American money on me."

"Oohhh, bad form that, Rose Tyler, not bringing any money when it's time to pay the piper!" spouts the Doctor between bites of his hot dog as his eyes widen in interest. "What are you going to do now?"

If the Doctor's previous glare could melt ice then Rose's present glower could melt bricks, fortunately her rescuer doesn't care to see her unhappy and offers to make restitution.

"I'll take care of it, gorgeous, don't you worry about a thing," declares Donny with a sympathetic gaze. "Consider it your 'Welcome to America' gift."

"Why that's brilliant, isn't it Rose?" chirps the Doctor as he starts pocketing various goods left and right. "Thank you ever so much, Danny, we'll never forget your kindness!"

"That's _Donny_, and you're welcome," he replies drily. His customer service smile reserved especially for patrons such as the Doctor instantly becomes more sincere when he turns back to Rose. "So, Rose, is there anything else that you want?"

"Yes, actually, there is," confirms Rose as she tugs him to her and gives him a proper snog. She pulls back and views his dazed expression with satisfaction. "I wanted to thank you properly."

She spins around to face the Doctor who has taken on an extremely unbecoming shade of green. "Are you alright, Doctor? You look as if you're going to be sick."

"Just heartsick," is his muttered reply, thankfully unheard by Rose.

"Bye, Donny," she calls over her shoulder as she grabs the fuming Time Lord's hand to lead them back to their seats. They've barely taken more than a few steps when the Doctor twists his body around to aim the sonic at the metal door in front of the concession stand, sending it slamming down onto the counter. Despite Donny's attempts to slide it back open, it remains stuck and the Doctor gleefully listens to his muffled curses as he pounds on the metal door.

Once they're back in their deck chairs, Rose begins shivering and rubs her hands up and down her arms for warmth. "It's getting chilly," she mentions as she watches him snuggle down further into his blanket.

He only offers her a noncommittal hum so when it grows steadily colder and she finds no further response is forthcoming , she presses, "You know, Doctor, there are two of us here."

He shifts in his chair and stares at her as if she's dribbled on her shirt. "I know that, Rose, I am a Time Lord after all." He burrows more comfortably under the blanket. "I can count to two."

Rose drops her head back onto the canvas behind her. "I was suggesting that you share your blanket with me."

"Oh?" he inquires in mock surprise. "I take it then that you've cooled down from your heated kiss with Donny boy back there?" He grunts in disgust. "I thought that he'd at least be able to keep your home fires burning until the trailers were finished."

"Is that what this is about? Are you jealous?" she demands while looking highly pleased at the idea.

"Jealous, jealous?" scoffs the Doctor in irritation, throwing off his blanket and moving off the deck chair to stomp around the area. "I'm not jealous! I'm furious, irrevocably infatuated, sickened to death at the thought of another man touching you and green-eyed with envy, but jealous? That doesn't seem to begin to touch on what I'm feeling right now!"

She could do absolutely nothing but stare at him, she was absolutely speechless. He was livid, wounded, possessive, completely emotional and it was all for her. It was the most glorious thing that she had ever seen. They should have taken 'Movie Night' off the TARDIS sooner.

He turns to her with barely concealed rage radiating from his gaze. "How am I possibly expected to take my best girl out for a night on the town if I'm forced to watch as some lecherous lout tries to steal you away from me?"

Rose's own gaze softens as she watches him lean against the TARDIS, his shoulders sagging in utter defeat. "Am I really your best girl?"

He raises his head and shakes his head in wonder at her question. How can she not see? He straightens up and walks over to her and simply stands there before her, a man in love, and hoping that his tone and his gaze will convey everything to her that he has yet found the courage to say. "Of course you are, Rose Tyler, who else could there be?"

And although she's waited this long to hear him speak such soft and pretty words to her, words that she knows are so hard for him to conceive much less utter, she finds that she's hesitant and nervous and everything else a woman in love feels when confronted with the possibility of finally having her dream come true. "Oh, I don't know, the TARDIS, maybe?"

Casting a wary eye towards the lantern, the Doctor hurriedly agrees, "Well, yes, of course there's the TARDIS, but that goes without saying! She's my best girl who's a ship; you're my best girl who's a human!"

"A human?" she verifies as she watches him nod his head eagerly. "So you're saying that you have a girl in every universal port then?"

"What? No, no, no, not at all!" The Doctor leans away from her in shock and confusion. _What went wrong there?_

Upon viewing his anguished expression, Rose relents with her teasing and decides that if he can be brave enough to take those first few steps towards changing their relationship then so can she. He watches her cautiously as she moves towards him and lifts her hand to cup his cheek where she places the gentlest kiss and whispers, "Thank you."

Raising his hand, he places it lovingly over hers which is still cradling his face, and places his own kiss on the inside of her palm. "It's about time that you learned to take a compliment."

She takes a deep breath and steels herself but she has to know. Is the way that he's acting, is it only for this one moment or for all the moments that they have from now on? "What's changed, Doctor? Why now?"

"Why not?" he returns jokingly until he sees the light dimming in her eyes and he hastens to explain. "It's not just now, Rose, not really, it's all the time. All the time that we run, we save lives, we hold onto dear life for ourselves and sometimes just merely hold onto each other. I once told you that we cling to this world but if the truth be told, I think we cling to each other." He glances down and releases a nervous laugh. "At least, I know that I cling to you…and I don't want to stop, not ever."

He moves her one hand from his face downwards until it's resting over one of his hearts and he does the same with her other hand until she's memorized the beats and can anticipate each oncoming thump. "I've offered you the universe, Rose, all of time and space, you've stolen my hearts and now I want you to share in my lives. I want that for us, Rose, I want that every day."

"Then we'll have it, Doctor," and then in a fiercely determined brooking no nonsense tone that Jackie Tyler herself would be so proud of, "_and we will have it every day."_

"Yeah?" he questions uncertainly, still so afraid of losing what feels like this one chance with her because if he fails in his quest to win her, how could they ever go back to how they were? How could he keep her with him then and how could she feel that she could stay?

"Yeah," she answers without a single doubt in her mind or in her heart. "Yeah, we will."

Unknowing and uncaring, the movie starts up behind them and a flock of stingrays soar through the air onscreen as a backdrop for the moment that they've both been hoping and wishing and longing and simply wanting for so long. "How long are you going to stay with me, Rose Tyler?"

"Forever," she responds before hooking her finger under his bowtie and drawing him towards her for a kiss. A kiss that far surpassed the one shared with _Donny_, if mutual hums of appreciation and hair ruffling are anything to go by.

They only part for some much needed air and to give the Doctor a chance to voice in husky tones, "Rose…you're wrinkling my bowtie."

Her only response is to tug on it until the knot loosens and it slowly falls apart. "Rose," he moans petulantly, "bowties are cool."

She entwines each side of the fallen tie around her fingers and starts walking backwards as she leads them towards the TARDIS. "I thought we might consider heating them up along with…other things…"

And after the TARDIS door closed upon the night outside, nothing more really needed saying.

**THE END**


End file.
